Shooting Industry March 2014 - Page 44

of these major segments, there are plenty of knives in all budget categories to entice your customer. Keep in mind, however, many knives available in the cutlery market today are what can be called “cross-over cutters” — knives that are equally effective for a broad range of duties — from combat and survival to skinning and general camp tasks. You can cover a broad customer base with these knives. The multi-tool is another segment of the cutlery market with broad appeal, and these tend not to be geared to a focused group of users, with only a few exceptions. Multi-tools are available in a wide range of sizes, and offering your customer a choice of each increases your chances of a sale. About a decade ago, cutlery manufacturers began ramping up for the SHOT Show and today many use the show to showcase new releases — just like about every segment of the firearms industry and its ancillary markets do. In addition, the Blade Show is held every June in Atlanta. This is the mother of all cutlery shows, and manufacturers also release an impressive number of new products at this event. The Blade Show comes at an advantageous time for firearms retailers. With fresh “hot stuff,” you can spice up your current inventory and seasonally adjust new merchandise for the year ahead. If attending the show is not in the equation, you can still get informed. Shooting Industry publishes an annual Blade Show review of the latest releases and you can check your favorite cutlery websites for updates on new releases around early June. Don’t let the dealer down the street run away with potential sales by besting you in new cutlery releases. Finally, if you have a website to supplement your retail store, you can optimize it to take advantage of knife sales. For instance, you’ve probably noticed those “If you like this, you may also like this” links that appear on specific product pages. There’s no reason why you can’t add a like-branded knife link to a firearms page. Small tweaks such as this not only create awareness of your knife inventory, but also increase your chances of an additional transaction. Think beyond what you’re doing now to promote your knives. Even small changes can increase sales — and your bottom line. 9 New for 2014, the Kahr Firearms Group introduced the Kahr Spyderco Delica4. The knife is promoted as, “the perfect companion to Kahr’s compact pistols.” Spice Up Your Inventory 44 MARCH 2014 Subscribe to SI DIGITAL www.shootingindustry.com